Today's children and teens have grown up with video games, open Internet access and more text messages in a day than their parents received in a lifetime. Criminals have exploited the door opened by families who do not practice cyber security. Author Paul Nourigat, Senior Wealth Strategist for U.S. Bank, has delivered seven financial literacy books for youth over the past year, with three of the books attacking cyber crime and financial fraud. Using fictional stories fused with original illustrations on each page, Nourigat is tapping the hot graphic novel format to appeal to young readers on their terms.

You're not aloneAs stated by the FBI, "At home, at work and at school, our growing dependence on technology, coupled with increasing cyber threats and risks to our privacy, demands greater security in our online world." As a clear sign of the pervasive risks, FBI.gov has dedicated attention to threats ranging from Phishing to new variations called "Smishing" and "Vishing" which combine online and offline techniques to defraud. Add to that "Operation Ghost Click", "Coreflood Botnet", "Operation Phish Fry" and "Dark Market" and it becomes quite clear that America requires a balance of agency protection and individual discipline to foil the criminals.

The Brutal TruthsSays the author, "Naturally, we all want to protect our kids and begin developing awareness of risks early in their lives. I felt it was critical to integrate privacy and safe technology practices into my financial literacy books." 5-7 year olds are exposed to age-old risks of crime in the poetic "Why Is There Money?". 7-12 year olds learn more about these risks in "Terrific Tools for Money", part of the 5 book "Marvels of Money" series. Nourigat did not forget the teens. His newest book "If Money Could Shout: the brutal truths for teens" is an 8 story graphic novel which opens with the edgy story "Too Good", showing the cycle of teens and their friends getting taken in an online scam and the after-effects on their families and friends. It is all too real.

Financial Impact?The Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) reports in its 2011 Internet Crime Report that "2011 marked the third year in a row that the IC3 received more than 300,000 complaints. The 314,246 complaints represent a 3.4 percent increase over 2010. The reported dollar loss was $485.3 million." As children have become the most diverse and progressive technology users, parents need to accept responsibility to learn and demand safe online practices, particularly as children's' defensive skills are not fully developed. To emphasize the risks, the Department of Homeland Security has declared October as the National Cyber Security Awareness Month.

Parents and teachers want help!This week, The Oregon State Treasury has delivered Nourigat's "Spending Success" to every elementary school in the state of Oregon (830 schools) as part of their progressive "Reading is an Investment" program. Emerging educational standards for financial literacy are integrated into the design of Nourigat's books. By also weaving life skills and reasoning skills into the financial literacy stories, Nourigat expects to magnify results from efforts in the home and the classroom.

FarBeyond Publishing creates media and tools to help parents and educators teach foundational concepts to youth.